MAY 17, 2001

Lotterer in Jaguar test

JAGUAR Formula Three driver Andre Lotterer will join the British marque's Formula One squad when he takes part in Valencia testing on Thursday, but it is not a permanent move for the German hopeful.

Jaguar moved test driver Pedro de la Rosa into the race team when Luciano Burti left before the Spanish Grand Prix, and that left a vacant seat in the test team.

But Jaguar claim that Lotterer is just a short-term fill-in for Eddie Irvine and is not believed to be keen on finalizing their test driver position in the near future.

"It has been a relentless test and race schedule for Eddie and given Andre's familiarity with the car from last year he has been drafted in to give Eddie a well-deserved day off," said a team spokesperson.

However, Lotterer will still be under scrutiny at the test, where he will drive alongside De la Rosa to test the team's much-hyped new aerodynamic developments.